Edward's Mistake
by Twilightlovr12
Summary: This is a section from breaking dawn where bella catches the scent of human blood. Can she resist in this version?
1. Chapter 1: Selfpreservation

Edward's mistake

…_But as my muscles bunched in preparation, the wind shifted, blowing stronger now, and from the south. I didn't stop to think, hurtling out of the trees in a path perpendicular to my original plan, scaring the elk into the forest, racing after a new fragrance so attractive that there wasn't a choice. It was compulsory. _

_The scent ruled completely. I was single-minded as I traced it, aware only of the thirst and the smell that promised to quench it. The thirst got worse, so painful now that it confused all my other thoughts and began to remind me of the burn of venom in my veins. _

_There was only one thing that had any chance of penetrating my focus now, an instinct more powerful, more basic than the need to quench the fire, it was the instinct to protect myself from danger. Self-preservation. _

_I was suddenly alert to the fact that I was being followed. The pull of the irresistible scent warred with the impulse to turn and defend my hunt. A bubble of sound built in my chest, my lips pulled back of their own accord to expose my teeth in warning. My feet slowed, the need to protect my back struggling against the desire to quench my thirst. _

_And then I could hear my pursuer gaining, and defense won. As I spun, the rising sound ripped its way up my throat and out. _

I dropped into a defensive crouch, hunching my shoulders in aggression towards my attacker.

But as I studied the attacker, looking for a flaw in defense or weakness, I saw a god-like figure, a figure that I would never hurt, and straitened up. His gold eyes flashed dangerously, and he only had one chance to take a cautious step towards me when a slight breeze distilled the air.

Immediately that irresistible scent wafted into my already parted jaws, and I didn't stop to think this time, the burning in my parched throat deciding for me, I darted away from Edward into the dense enclosure of trees. Instantly he was on me, trying to pin me to the ground, trying to prevent me from reaching my final destination. There was just one slight problem with that plan.

He may be faster, but I was stronger. By far. Forgetting the fact completely that this was E_dward,_ I flipped over onto my stomach and twisted around, snapping his arm back with a crunch muffled by the dense forest surrounding me. In vain he struggled, but I pushed him down, leaping to my feet nimbly.

Again I was drawn to the scent, darting from tree to tree, the fragrance luring me with its way-more-than-appealing aroma. I could tell I was drawing close with my pray when the scent strengthened.

I stopped short of the unlucky human, concealing myself behind a tree as I calculated the distance between us.

As I flexed my muscles, preparing to close the distance between us in one bound, a restraining arm wound its way around me, restraining me.

It was Edward. And he way crossing the line. He wouldn't make me loose my pray this time. I writhed, trying to free myself, and managed to sink my teeth into his unharmed arm. He didn't need to scream: his eyes did that by themselves. I could see a fiery pain building up within them and saw my chance.

I released my hold on his arm, untangling him from my body. I darted towards my pray, moving in for the kill…


	2. Chapter 2: Frenzy

**Chapter 2**

I hit my target with deadly force, knocking it over with a loud _slap._ My hunger was driving me mad, clouding all my thoughts, pursuing me onwards towards my goal. I snapped the unfortunate's spine, bending its head back in a sickening angle so that I could sink my teeth into the vulnerable flesh concealing what I most desired: …blood.

I drank with a ravenous need, blood streaming down my chin, that luscious, irresistible scent consuming me.

When, finally, the body was completely drained of crimson, I was able to grab hold of my conscience. I pushed the body away from me, utterly disgusted with my whole being, my whole existence. Now I knew why Edward had wanted to stop doing this. _Edward._

A sickening jolt shot through me. _Edward! _I searched the spot where he had tried to hold me back… where I had won.

I shook my head to clear my thoughts. This wasn't about me. I ran in a sort of haze along the path in the dense forestry. When it seemed my heart would burst from all the clashing emotions flowing through me, I found myself staring at a pale white form lying among the pines where I had been hidden just minutes before.

He lay unmoving to the normal human eye, but my newly developed crimson red eyes saw it: a faint shiver travelling rapidly across his perfect skin. I gracefully picked him up, caressing his features, now dripping with the blood left over from my unfortunate victim.

I ran as fast as I had ever run, avoiding the tree branches only for Edward's sake. I leapt across the lake and was through the house window within mere seconds. Alice, Carlisle, and Jasper were all awaiting our return.

No blush could penetrate my carefully controlled mask, but I could feel shame running white hot through my veins at the thought of what I had done. I couldn't leave yet…not yet…soon. I had to stay with Edward, it was that simple.

A tiny part of my brain pointed out reasonably that I couldn't hide from the horror I had just havocked. But I pushed it out of my conscious brain, focussing on Edward.

Carlisle had taken him upstairs where he kept all his impressive equipment. I looked at his limp form. I did this to him. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't bring myself to accept that fact.

Carlisle traced Edward's wounds, calculating the damage.

Finally, after a torturous count of 50, he said morosely, 'Bella…he's not going to die--'

I held my breath, hanging on every word—

'But he's too weak. He hasn't eaten in days, weeks, even. And because of his'—not our—'special diet, he is left with no strength after that attack. He needs blood.'

_Blood?_

'Bella, he needs _human_ blood.'

My face flickered with understanding. An awkward silence fell in which Jasper tried to control the mood of the room into calmness. Alice's eyes were glazed. I could only guess what was going through her mind, but I did know I would find out soon.

I looked down. I didn't want to do what I had just done. The frenzy I went into was inescapable. I couldn't. But would I do it for Edward? More accurately, could I do it for Edward? There was, in complete truth, only one way to find out.

I nodded slowly.' I have to do this,' I murmured. I did. I owed Edward. I thought that maybe if I became a vampire: faster than 2x a cheetah's top speed, strong enough to crush giant pines with one massive swipe, I could save Edward's life like he had saved mine so many times—I closed my eyes—but here I was, looking at Edward with a moon crescent scar on his hand feinting a replica of my razor sharp teeth.

Because of me.

An overwhelming blow of emotion came, making me stagger slightly. I couldn't take one more moment in this room.

I backed out, turning around and running full fledged out of the window, embracing the wind and the icy clearness that came with it.

I was Bella Cullen.

I was a vampire.

And I was going to save Edward.


	3. Chapter 3: Eric

**Chapter 3**

I raced past the rough brown tree trunks in the harsh dull half-light. I tasted a faint metallic scent and grimaced, heading deeper into the dense forestry until I careened onto a gray surface. My bare feet embraced the smooth, hard surface; my bedraggled, ice blue dress shimmering faintly.

I barrelled gracefully along it until I came to a plain, unremarkable brick house, trying to keep the overpowering aroma of human blood from clouding my thoughts, however uncomfortable going without breathing was. I could not afford to loose myself this time.

Whoever was in that house was about to get the scare of their life.

_Focus._ Right. I shifted into a crouch, aiming for the warm light spilling out from one of the Victorian windows on the second floor. Leaping up, I stealthily swung myself over and into it, the glittering glass having utterly no affect on my diamond-hard skin. The reflected light off of them caused my pale figure to glimmer for a moment with what light there was, promptly fading back into a pale white marble imitation.

My suspicions had been right: there was a human in this room.

Instead of being overwhelmed, as I had been on my hunting trip with Edward—just thinking that name hurt—the harsh reality of why I was here, along with the fact that I had already eaten, brought an adrenaline rush, clearing my mind of all else but tactics.

The human had greasy black hair and acne, frozen in the act of writing a letter.

I looked at the angle of his posture, calculating the best way to sling him over my back. He had to be taken warm. I grimaced.

At least I knew he wouldn't move anytime soon—he was frozen, staring at me—but it wasn't as if his movements wouldn't be predictable enough without that benefit.

Suddenly, with another rush of adrenaline, I shot forward, slinging him over my back, and then darting out the window, landing just right. If any other human came into close proximity, I knew I wouldn't be able to stop myself. I could feel the human's shuddering breaths, feel his racing heartbeat.

I ran flat out towards and along the road, agony enveloping me as blood, warm and amazingly appealing, pumped throughout the victim of my mistakes. His body was too close: I wanted to sink my teeth into the arms around my shoulders. I wanted to tear that worthless human apart until there was not one drop of blood left for me to drink. For a moment, I didn't care that this was Edward's cure, that if I drank out of this human now, it would bleed to death and the blood would be cold and unsatisfying. But I couldn't. I remembered Edward in the meadow, beautiful. And all that wit, all that beautiful perfection would never be mine again. Unless…the Voultri? No. Not if there was another way to save Edward first.

I turned at the Cullen's house, positioning my feet to jump through the window. I could feel two other heartbeats downstairs, none of which smelled very appetizing.

I headed strait for Edward, hearing Alice and Jasper right behind me, a strange gasp broke from behind me, but neither did I have the time or patience to see what was disturbing them.

Carlisle must already have been upstairs. I was with him in an instant, handing over the human that would save Edward's life to Alice, all the while longing to drink that highly satisfying crimson liquid.

Edward's head lay motionless against a white table. He must have been awake, though, because the moment Eric came through the door with me, his head snapped up. He got up fluidly, only to stagger back into Carlisle's waiting arms as his strength failed him.

At that moment, I wished I couldn't see Carlisle's face. On it was a mixture of pain and agony, the decision to save Edward mixing with his intense dislike of violence and his vegetarian philosophy. And something else…I couldn't place that extra thought…_surprise?...concern?_

Would Carlisle ever forgive me? I didn't know. Probably not.

But that didn't matter. Not this second. Edward mattered. He was staggering towards that brown-eyed human with shaky movements. I couldn't even catch his gaze. I was a coward. Now I knew of Edward's constant self-hatred. Because I felt it, only for a better reason—and ten times worse.

My eyes followed him longingly, warily.

I only spared a glance in the paralyzed human's direction before my brain finally processed the feelings that I had ignored earlier from Carlisle and Alice.

_Eric._


	4. Chapter 4: Remembering

**Chapter 4**

All I could do was stare. Of all the people in Forks…not that there were many...It seemed odd that the person who had _tried _to help me on my first day of school—the day I met Edward--

Edward's eyes were black with hunger. He tried to conceal his feelings from me, to protect me from the agony he was in, more than I deserved. But my heightened senses showed me what I had done. His beautiful features were distorted in concentration. His breathing had stopped since Eric had come, but it was clear it would have been ragged and shallow.

It was hard to believe that just two hours ago I had been suffering under the grip of that fiery venom. Still harder still was the disgusting fact that I could so easily complicate my life, or rather my existence, in such a short period of time…

Carlisle watched me carefully, considering, perhaps. He seemed to have come to a decision, because he murmured:" Bella, he has to drink _now_," and on a more hesitant note added," Renesme will need all the medically donated blood, and the doctors at the hospital are getting suspicious."

At Renesme's name—_my daughter's_ name—a gasp broke from my carefully controlled mask. How could I have forgotten? The one I had risked my life for standing without either parent on the bottom floor.

Two heartbeats. Now I remembered. Anger surged through me at my stupidity, and I had a sudden urge to go down and just hold my daughter then and there.

As this sudden, half-anticipated burst of emotion exploded inside of me, Jasper lunged forward, wary of the sudden change in climate, to hold me back. Alice followed in his wake, wary.

Grimly they managed to pin my arms behind me after my impulsive resistance.

They were worried—I didn't need Jasper's 6th sense to tell me that—but my enlarged thinking spatial area also noted that now the door was left unprotected.

Evidently Eric had noticed this too, because immediately after my struggle, Edward walked, still fluidly, to his meal—which was about to make an immensely futile break for it.

And Edward was on him, so much stronger even at his weakest, sinking his teeth into Eric's throat and beginning to drink noisily.

Eric's high-pitched scream rebounded in my eardrums, echoed immediately with another cry of agony as the blood was slowly sucked out of him.

Inside, I was busy panicking. It was entirely my fault that Edward ever had to go into a frenzy like this. And, despite the irrevocably passionate love I felt for him, I hated to see his pupils, which had turned to meet mine the moment Eric had become dry and wrinkly.

His eyes were a fathomless crimson, his pupils far away. His recently acquired eye color, so like mine, made me shiver. It was so unlike the Edward I had come to love. The contrast with his hair was startling.

But he was alive, and to the core of my being he would always be my perfect Edward.

I fought to break free of Alice and Jasper, to run and embrace him.

Unfortunately, they took it the wrong way, forcing me to my knees as I struggled towards Edward.

He looked at them, shaking his head a fraction of an inch. Finally, their grip slackened, allowing me to lunge at Edward.

Forgetting his fragility (compared with my newborn strength) I threw y arms around him, pressing my lips to his passionately. To my freely expressed horror, he pulled away, holding me at arms length.

_Would he ever forgive me?_ I thought grimly. It was just what I deserved. I pulled away.

Immediately surging forward he whispered, "Bella, love, it's over."

This was met by me with blank incomprehension.

"It's over. That was reckless of me, I'm terribly sorry."

He spoke with ringing sincerity, and finally I realized what he meant.

"No," I shouted. The strength of my voice surprised me. He couldn't honestly think that this was his fault! Knowing him, though…

I shook my head vigorously at him, "Edward, I'm so sorry," I gushed, completely unaware of the intent stares of everyone else in the rooms. "If it wasn't for me, I—I—, "I broke of, my eyes burning.

He pulled me towards him, his lips trying to stop my apology as I remembered that I was still a newborn.

He said, fiercely, "Bella, that was all my fault. I should have checked, but _I'm alright_." He spoke the latter to my mumbled protests.

But as we embraced, my mind flickered to one of my recent discoveries:" Edward…Renesme."


	5. Disclaimer

**Disclaimer:**** I don't own any of the Twilight books or characters. **

**(but don't we all wish we did?!)**

**Also: Please provide feedback! **


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